At the same time, when she got into long distance running, she never really imagined it would amount to anything.

But Elders kept working, kept training and on Friday that all paid off as she signed scholarship papers to continue her career at Rend Lake College.

Elders will run for head coach James Wooldridge and the Warriors next fall.

"I've always really, really wanted to run and when I got into this, I never really imagined I would amount to anything, but this is really exciting," Elders said after signing her papers Friday in the Harrisburg High School Media Center. " It's something I never thought i would have the opportunity to do and now I can't wait to get started, again."

Elders has been one of the brightest spots for Bulldog head coach Chuck Ingram and the cross country program for the past three years. For Wooldridge, the programs structure is something that stuck out to him.

"I've been watching Miranda since she was a sophomore," the RLC coach said. "Coach Ingram has a good program going. the structure is there. he doesn't overtrain them or kill them. A lot of kids that are good in high school have been through the gamut and worked so hard that by the time they get to college, they are just worn out with it."

Elders said she's excited about the opportunity to stay close to home. She's also looking forward to making necessary strides to be successful at the next level.

" I have friends here and I like that I can be here and continue to do what I want to do and what I need to do.

"I know I need to get my times better, that's for sure and I think these girls that I'm running with will help me get there for sure."

Wooldridge added that the opportunities for Elders are endless. Aside from having a great opportunity, she'll get to see many places she normally might not have the chance to see.

"We'll travel to different states. It's a great learning experience. She'll get around some faster girls, but for me, when I look at distance runners, I look at build, desire and the baking of her coach.

I've known coach Ingram for quite a while now and he said she is just a really hard worker, a really good girl and those are things that are really important to me. Not so much how good of a girl you are, but how hard are you willing to work."